1

What is the difference between nach and nachdem and in what instances would you choose to use one over the other?

|improve this question

closed as off-topic by πάντα ῥεῖ, user unknown, Robert, Henning Kockerbeck, Glorfindel May 3 at 9:14

This question appears to be off-topic. The users who voted to close gave this specific reason:

  • "This site is about the usage and rules of the German language. It is not well-suited to replace a dictionary, thesaurus, or conjugation table. If you have already consulted such sources and still have questions, please edit your question to explain what you found and why it did not help. See this post on Meta for more information." – user unknown, Robert, Glorfindel
If this question can be reworded to fit the rules in the help center, please edit the question.

3

The difference between nach and nachdem is similar to vor and bevor. First, they are syntactically different: nach is a preposition and nachdem is a conjunction. This means that the latter will require typically at least a two-part sentence (for it to be connected by nachdem). The preposition nach doesn't require this.

Examples carrying the same information:

  • Nachdem sie gemeinsam abendgegessen hatten, hat er sämtliche Teller gespült.
  • Nach dem gemeinsamen Abendessen hat er sämtliche Teller gespült.

Remark: Nachdem has to be used with Consecutio temporum

|improve this answer
1

Nach is a preposition, and nachdem is a subjunction. So, these are totally different word classes. Consider the following examples:

nach

  • Ich gehe nach Hause.
  • Die Drei kommt nach der Zwei.

nachdem

  • Ich sah ihn erst, nachdem ich zuhause angekommen war.
  • Ich kaufe eine der beiden Jacke, je nachdem welche besser passt.
|improve this answer

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.